Category Archives: Food & Fitness

Can you believe with in our 5th week of Fitness Fridays?

All I need to do is get through today, and I will officially be on vacation for 12 glorious days!! I’ll be busy on some of those days, but there will also be plenty of relaxing. I deserve it!

Alright, let’s get down to business, first things first, I’d like to thank Hanna Lei for linking up last week. I’m really digging her blog. First of all the layout is simple, and I love that. It looks so fresh and clean and is easy to follow. Secondly, her posts are relevant and fun to read. I’m a big fan of the post she linked up about Sports Bras and a Confession (go ahead and click there, I’ll wait).

Keeping Your Diet Clean and Healthy Can Be Hard

If you read my blog frequently, you know that I’ve struggle with Binge Eating Disorder. For a long time I had no idea what it was that I was dealing with, and I assumed there was no way of overcoming it. Thankfully I was wrong!

I started writing about it on my blog, doing research, reading everything I could get my hands on about the disease and realized that with hard work, I could beat B.E.D.

It has been a long slow process, and I still occasionally find myself craving junk, but for the most part, I am now able to ignore those feelings, and fuel my body in healthy ways. You’re probably wondering what has helped me get to this point, right?

My Tips to Keep Your Diet on Track

1. Hard Work and Dedication – There’s a quote by Theodore Roosevelt that resonates true here.

[Tweet ““Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty. -Theodore Roosevelt”]

There are so many times when I’ve reached for junk food, and had to talk myself out of actually eating it. Telling myself that isn’t how I lead my life now. I am conscious of my decisions! It is a constant struggle, happening multiple times a day, but each day it gets easier to tell myself no and to enjoy the fresh food I bring from home.

Eating better and fueling my body appropriately is well worth it. I have been feeling amazing and so positive! I feel like I’m on top of the world.

2. Surrounding Yourself with Supportive People – This is HUGE! I have several people in my life that I trust entirely, and that I feel 100% comfortable with. I share everything with them, every single success, and every single downfall.

For instance, when I ran an errand in the middle of the day and managed to come back without stopping at McDonald’s or any other fast food place with a drive-thru.

To some people that may seem insignificant, but to a food addict, being able to go out on your own, and come back without junk is one of the biggest accomplishments you can have. Having someone to share that with, that understands how HUGE that is, and celebrating with you is one of the biggest things that will help you through this.

3. Drink Shakeology – Okay, I know you probably think this is a cheap shot, added for a sale. But I swear to you, that it is not. I simply want to share what has worked for me.

I’ve been drinking Shakeology for a month now. In the beginning I didn’t notice even the difference and I really thought that all the hype was just that, hype. However, now a month in, I realize it isn’t. It has been life changing!

Prior to drinking Shakeo, when I’d think of a Big Mac or Quarter Pounder, my mouth would instantly water (I’m being 100% truthful). Now, a month out, when I think of those foods, I think of all the grease and fat involved and how awful it made me feel. That type of thing NEVER phased me before, I didn’t care what was in the burger or that my blood pressure would raise and my fingers would swell, I just wanted the burger. A bad food day to me now, is something like a salad or turkey sandwich at Panera.

I’m not touting it as a miracle drug (it’s not), but the different nutrients and herbs involved truly help stave off cravings. And it is now clinically proven to…

So yes, I’m smitten with Shakeology and I’m not afraid to scream it from the rooftops, so that everyone knows it.

I haven’t had a binge in 4 weeks!!!!

I want that to just sit there a second, because it feels amazing. I’ve never gone more than a few days, even on previous diets.

If you would like more information on Shakeology, you can email me at jillianokeefe1022@gmail.com or check-out the Shakeology website.

Those are my 3 tips that I proudly standby and support!!

Now Onto the Goals

Amount of Weight Lost

I’m happy to share a success with you…

I lost another 2.2 lbs!! Bringing my grand total to 7 lbs, which means I can get my manicure. 😀 I think I’m going to wait until my nails are a bit longer, though. I just trimmed them and they wouldn’t look very pretty painted so short. I can’t wait!

Exercise Goals

Last week I set a goal to continue with the 21 Day Fix and workout with it 6 times and then 2 additional workouts of running or biking.

COMPLETE! Boom! I sure did do six days of 21 Day Fix workouts and 2 run/bike workouts. I am on FIRE!

Next week I am going to stick with the same goal – six days with 21 Day Fix and 2 run or bike workouts.

Food Goals

Last week, I stated I wanted to continue with the 21 Day Fix Meal Plan and Shakeology. Another success to share, I ate on point and followed the meal plan perfectly, with only 2 handfuls of m&ms all week. Goodness it feels good to share successes!

I’m going to stick with the same program because it is working and I’m not bored.

Okay, that’s enough from me for today. Be sure to share you posts with us in the link-up below. We love featuring new blogs!

What are some the ways that you keep healthy food in your diet?

How do you avoid giving into your cravings?

TGIF, friends! It’s finally Friday!

Who remembers watching TGIF on ABC on Friday nights?? Anyone? I’m sure I am not the only one! I used to look forward to that night of TV more than anything. Well, that’s not entirely true, I did look forward to the night Full House was on. I’d love that show, still do (and I still watch it today).

Anyhoo – I completely veered off topic there. We’re in week #2 of our Fitness Friday link-up and I’m really excited because we had two great blog posts link-up with us.

Last week, I explained that we would be picking a weekly theme to talk about on our blog. Last week’s theme was ensuring you fit exercise in while traveling, this week we decided that we’d discuss how to keep motivation for working out when the newness of a fitness program has passed.

Staying motivated when the newness has passed

If you’re like me, it’s can be really difficult to stay motivated to eat right and workout hard, but there are ways to overcome your slowly waning drive.

1. Assess the Workout You are Doing. Consider the workout you’re doing, is it something that you enjoy or do you find it boring or repetitive. If you find that your answer is yes to either of those, PICK A NEW WORKOUT! There are so so many options out there for staying active, don’t ever let yourself get bored and fall off track.

2.Have You Plateaued? If you’ve been doing the same routine or type of exercise for some time, it’s possible that you’ve plateaued. When that happens, you can get frustrated and have a hard time keeping your focus. Switch it up, try something new, take a different running route, anything that will shock your muscles back into action.

3. Are you getting lazy? Yes, it may sound harsh, but are you getting lazy? Is your motivation disappearing because you just can’t “find the energy” to get up off the couch and put your sneakers on? Then stop making excuses, put the sneakers on and just work out. Even if you convince yourself to do 10 minutes, that 10 minutes is better than keeping your butt on the couch.

Onto the goals

Amount of Weight Lost

Last week I maintained, this week I gained 3 lbs. I’m not really surprised, I had pizza Wednesday night and on Tuesday, for lunch, I had pulled pork and pasta salad (at a work meeting). Neither lend itself to being healthy, so I gained.I need to get focused next week!

ExerciseGoals

Last week I said I wanted to keep working out, using the 21 Day Fix and I can share that I have continued to stick with it and I am enjoying the workouts so much. I got through the entire 7 days and I loved them all, even the hardest day, Total Body Cardio Fix. Yikes! That’s a toughy!

This week, I am going onto my 3rd week of 21 Day Fix. I’d like to continue with that and get 7 days worth of workouts! On the side, I’d like to take some more walks with Emmett and get to the outdoor pool with him a few more times.

Food Goals

I set a goal to continue sticking with healthy eating and drinking my Shakeology, and I partially completed that. I had my Shakeology every single day (I am loving it!) and I stuck to the 21 Day Fix Meal Plan about 75% of the time. It’s a wonderful feeling, I just need to get to 100%. 😀

Next week, I want to continue following the 21 Day Fix Meal Plan, and drinking my Shakeology. I look forward to reporting a loss next week.

Alrighty, that about does it for this week’s Fitness Friday – We’d love it if you shared your awesome fitness related posts with our link-up below.

How do you keep your motivation up when you’ve been working out for awhile?

What are some of your exercise and food goals for the next week?

If you want to start your Monday off on a generous foot and want to support cancer research, donate to my ride. I’m riding for Roswell Park Cancer Institute and their Ride for Roswell. Anything will help me reach my goal, and further advance cancer research. Just click HERE to donate.

Guys! I’m super duper excited because a friend of mine and I have decided to join forces and create a brand-spankin-new fitness/health focused link-up. This is going to be so much fun, and it will be recurring post, happening on Fridays!

Introductions

I’d like to introduce you to Kathy from The Panda Post. Her blog is focused on leading a healthy life, through healthy eating and exercise. She is super active and willing to try just about any workout, which really inspires me to try something new and different (something I struggle with). You can also check her out on Facebook, by clicking here.

Our link-up is going to be a bit different than some link-ups because our posts will not be exactly the same. We will have a common theme between blogs, but what we write about will be entirely different (or possibly the same, if we feel similarly). This week, we decided our theme would be (drum roll please)….

How to fit in workouts while traveling

I honestly don’t travel a lot, hardly ever, actually. Except to my parents for the day, but the few times that I did stay overnight in a hotel, the easiest way for me to get in a workout, was to bring workout DVDs from home. They’re compact (so they pack easily), they don’t require you to leave your hotel room and go workout in the hotel gym (not that there’s anything wrong with doing that), and it requires very little motivation to get started. The most you need to do is convince yourself to get off the couch and put the DVD in. 😉

There are loads of places to get workout DVDs, but my current personal favorite would have to be the Beachbody site. I realize you probably think I’m just saying that because I’m now a Beachbody coach, but I assure you that is not even remotely why. The workouts available through Beachbody consist of P90x, TurboFire, Insanity, 21 day FIX (my current workout, more on this in a second) and plenty more are freakin amazing! They’ve changed people’s lives, made stronger more confident individuals and I’m truly happy to be a part of that bunch.

So yes, I’m a Beachbody coach, but that doesn’t mean that I am biased. I know a good workout, I used to be in amazing shape and the workouts I’ve done through Beachbody are some serious muscle building workouts!

If you’re traveling, there are a few other sites that you can check-out for DVDs, but you can also stream a lot of workouts on your iPad or other tablet, and even some hotels (or if you’re staying with relatives) have ways you can stream them right through their wifi and TV.

One thing I will say, is that you should not let vacations derail any progress that you’ve made!

Onto the Goals

Amount of Weight Lost

I stayed exactly the same as last week, but I am not even remotely upset. I know I worked hard, ate well – so the weight will eventually come up!

Exercise Goals

Last week, I stated that I wanted to complete 7 days of 30 minute workouts, following the 21 day FIX schedule. Well…Success!! I didn’t do 7 days, but that’s simply because I started on Monday, but I’ve worked out every single day since then. I feel amazing, I’m so sore (a good sore), but my mood is soaring!

This week, I’d like to continue to focus on my 21 day FIX workouts and do the scheduled video each night. 30 minute workouts may not seem like much, but when they are as intense as these are, 30 minutes is plenty. Seriously! Such an amazing workout!

Food Goals

Last week I said I wanted to follow the 21 day FIX meal plan, once again, I can report SUCCESS! Man is it fun coming on here and reporting successes.

I ate so well for the entire week, I was drinking my Shakeology, feeling fueled and not stuffed (which is a great feeling), and my cravings were minimal. I can’t wait to continue with this same goal, next week!

Alright, folks, since we’re still hammering out the details on how this blog hop will work, for now, feel free to link-up any of your fitness related posts. You should absolutely try following your hosts on their social media, but also check-out some of the other blogs linked up. Nothing says party, like mingling!

What are the best ways you fit in exercise when you’re traveling for work or pleasure?

Happy Friday!

I don’t know about you, but I am SO thrilled to be here again. It has been one heck of a week and I’m really excited for the weekend. A certain someone special in my life has a birthday on Saturday (Seamus), so we’ll be celebrating that, otherwise we’ll be doing some stuff around the house and some major relaxing.

Friday Fitness

I’ve been thinking, and I decided that my blog needs a new (old) series. For those of you who have been reading since I started, you may remember when I had a post that I did every Friday where I talked about my fitness goals, the weight I lost or didn’t lose, whether I was tracking my food, etc (you can read all of the old Friday Fitness posts, here). It kept me accountable, until it didn’t, and the reason it didn’t was because I began making excuses and then just decided to cancel the series because I hated sharing my failures each week.

I’m at a point now, where I truly believe that I am ready to lose the weight and that my mind is too. I’ve had a few different instances over the last week, where I was craving junk food (Tim Bits to be exact), and after really thinking about it, I realized I didn’t want them and that I didn’t want to feel like crap after eating them. It was easy for me to turn away! I hope this means that I am beginning my road to recovery.

Steps to Better Health

I’ve begun taking steps to better health, I recently signed-up to be a Beachbody Coach, I’m really excited about this and will be sharing more as time goes on. Since I signed-up as a coach, I chose my first Beachbody program and went with the 21 day FIX. If you’re interested in learning more about Beachbody and their workouts and having me as your coach (for free – your only cost is that of the challenge pack) or are interested in becoming a coach for yourself (again more details on this in a few days), you can visit my page by clicking here.

Goals

So, how this is going to work, is that I will be sharing my weekly goals and in future weeks, I’ll be sharing my success/failure from the past week. My goal is not to cop out after a few weeks, even if I fail. Failure is a part of getting into shape, especially when you are as out of shape and overweight as I am, I want you guys to know me as a real person. So I will be sharing the good, the bad and the ugly!

Exercise Goals

I will be working out 7 days a week for 30 minutes, following the 21 day FIX schedule. I can do anything for 30 minutes!

Food Goals

I will also be following the 21 day FIX food plan, which I will share more in detail in future posts.

Here’s to a really great week of workouts!

Your turn!

I’d love to hear what your goals are, or what workouts you’re doing?

Has anyone ever done a Beachbody workout before? What are your thoughts?

If you want to start your Monday off on a generous foot and want to support cancer research, donate to my ride. I’m riding for Roswell Park Cancer Institute and their Ride for Roswell. Anything will help me reach my goal, and further advance cancer research. Just click HERE to donate.

Sometimes Mondays can be a real bummer, here are 20 tips to help get the day off on the right food!

I think most of us can agree that Mondays can be difficult. Whether it’s because you spent the entire weekend curled up on the couch watching movies, or outdoors at the beach, getting back in the work mindset can be difficult. Here are 20 tips to make your Monday better!

Set your coffee maker up so that it starts brewing a few minutes before you wake up. This way, when you begrudgingly crawl out of bed you’re delicious hot coffee will be waiting for you. Sometimes that’s all the motivation you need to get moving.

Choose to wear your favorite outfit, shoes, or favorite hairstyle. When you look hot, you feel hot – this will help put you in a better place to start the day.

Favorite breakfast healthy breakfast on Monday morning? Yes, please! Maybe there’s a new oatmeal that you’ve been dying to try or a new crusty bread to dip in your eggs, whatever the breakfast is, making it on Monday morning will make you look forward to waking up and getting your day started.

Be sure that on Sunday evening, you take the time to get yourself organized for the week ahead. Starting the week, not knowing what you’re in for can be extremely overwhelming and would put anyone in a bad mood.

Wake up a few minutes earlier than normal. Having the time to stop and smell the roses, so to speak, will lead to a much more relaxed day.

When it’s time to hit the shower on Monday morning, why not make it an aromatherapy shower? A personal favorite of mine, is the citrus scent. The scent of citrus can help you feel refreshed, happy and ready to take on the world. Sounds like a good place to start.

Love to workout? Do your workout first thing in the morning. It will leave you feeling energized, plus you won’t need to worry about doing it once you get home from work/school/running errands.

Start looking forward to your next weekend, by making plans. We really shouldn’t rush our days by, but if the only way you’re going to make it through Monday is by making plans for the next Saturday, there’s definitely no harm in that.

If you work outside the home, sitting down at your desk and diving right into the hardest work for the day, can lead to some serious stress! Why not start your work day by going through email, reading any outstanding articles or newsletters or networking? It might seem like you’d get less work done in a week, but by taking it easy on Monday morning, you start your week relaxed with low stress, which leads to a more productivity for the remaining week.

I think a large majority of people who work outside the home, schedule any fun lunch dates for Fridays (myself included). Why not schedule lunch with that friend you haven’t seen in ages on Monday? It will give you something to look forward to and make your transition from lazy weekend, to busy work day, easier.

Does your week start out with a tough meeting or an intense deadline? Try moving those dates to later in the week, this way you aren’t starting your week on a stressful foot.

Roll with whatever Monday will bring. Sometimes even the best laid plans get screwed up, so don’t beat yourself up for what you can’t control, accept it and move on.

If you’re a stay at home mom, or work at home mom – try taking the kids to a playground early in the morning. They’ll get the opportunity to run and get some energy out, and you’ll have the chance to take a deep breath and prepare for everything the week holds for you.

Make a gratitude list. Some days, no matter what you do, you just can’t seem to focus on anything but the negative. Try to take 15 minutes and make a list of everything that you have, that you are thankful for.

Be positive! Even if you’re not totally feeling it, put on a happy face and spew positivity. I can almost guarantee that after acting this way for a few hours, you’ll start to actually feel this way.

Make someone else happy. Plan to do something thoughtful or generous for another person, the satisfaction you’ll feel from making someone else’s day will definitely lift even the most rotten of moods.

Get in a few good laughs. When you’re feeling awful and super stressed, take some time to talk with a funny friend and get in a good belly laugh. Just the act of laughing will help lower your blood pressure (thereby lowering stressful feelings) and will lift your mood.

Take small breaks throughout your day. Sometimes going from the relaxing vibe of the weekend, to the stressful one of Monday can be too much to handle, by taking a 5 minute break here or there to take a quick walk or get some fresh air, you’ll be helping your body to relax.

Read some inspirational quotes. There’s is nothing more motivating than popping onto Instagram (you can follow me here) and reading some motivational quotes to make the Monday blahs go away.

Figure out why you have Monday blues. Is it time for a career change, or time to take on a new assignment?

There you have it, 20 great tips to have a killer Monday!

Your turn!

Please share your tips or tricks to make it through even the toughest of Mondays, in the comments below.

If you want to start your Monday off on a generous foot and want to support cancer research, donate to my ride. I’m riding for Roswell Park Cancer Institute and their Ride for Roswell. Anything will help me reach my goal, and further advance cancer research. Just click HERE to donate.

Yeah, I realize that it’s not Sunday, but we still needed to meal plan, so we did it today.

After a long weekend of packing, moving and now unpacking, I was ready to sit down and meal plan, unfortunately it didn’t quite happen that way because we still had plenty of unpacking to do. What ended up happening was us taking Emmett to day care, a quickly thrown together meal plan, and then a day full of unpacking (and it’s still not even close to being done).

For the past few weeks I’ve been using these great meal plan sheets, but in the move I lost them and haven’t found their box yet. Needless to say, planning wasn’t as fun as it has been, and we definitely forgot a few things. Either way, the shopping got done and we now have a fully stocked fridge with loads of yummy goodness.

This Week’s “Thrown together” Meal Plan

Monday – Scrounge around house

Tuesday – Crock-post salsa chicken fajitas

Wednesday – Steak with chick pea, tomato & feta salad

Thursday – Homemade Hamburgers and Fries

Friday – Marinated Chicken and Brussel Sprouts

Saturday – Homemade Pizza with Veggies

That’s it, that’s my meal plan. It’s actually shaping up to be a yummy week, despite it being thrown together at the last minute.

Thankfully I am off tomorrow, and will be spending the day unpacking. There’s so much to do, but slowly but surely, box by box, we’re getting through it.

Your turn!

What’s on your menu for the week? I’d love to hear your plans, in the comments below.

Excuses are really easy to make, so easy that I’ve probably made one or two already today.

Why is that? Why are excuses just so easy to make?

My alarm goes off at 4:45, I wake up and get out of bed. The very first thing I say to myself (nearly everyday) is, don’t worry about working out. You’re tired and can go sleep on the couch, and off I go to do just that. I do this on a daily basis and swear each morning will be different, that when I wake up I will NOT go sleep on the couch, tomorrow I will workout. Tomorrow I will turn on my yoga app and do a few moves to strengthen my back. Tomorrow I will no longer make excuses and tomorrow I will be a better person. Each tomorrow comes and I go through the same flow every time and make more and more excuses. I’m getting pretty sick to death of hearing myself make these excuses and I wouldn’t be surprised if those around me feel the same way. I decided, because I want to stop hating the decisions I make, that I will do some research on ways to avoid being a perpetual excuse maker.

Ways to Avoid Making Excuses

Set Your Goals – Take some time and write out all of your goals, every single one of them, even the far out, way down the road ones. Write them down! Once you’ve written them down, slowly go through the list and write down every possible excuse that you might have for not meeting that goal. After you have that all written down you can begin to work on ways to overcome or get around those excuses. You may even find that most of your excuses aren’t even valid or are things that you don’t need to work hard to get around.

Get Over Yourself – Have you ever spent time acknowledging your own responsibility in your excuses, or is it always someone else’s fault? Or do you feel like people are out to get you? If you struggle with either of these thoughts, then you need to get over yourself and realize that there will always be people out to get you, judge you, criticize you or disrespect you. Don’t waste your time trying to find ways to disprove their thoughts and opinions, it will just make you seem suspicious and distrustful explains an article on askmen.com.

Excuses Disrespect Your Hard Work – Whether you fail or succeed, you should own up and be in charge of the situation. When you make excuses it disrespects the work you put in, even if you’ve failed. [source] Own up, it feels good to be fully accountable for your actions.

Stop Complaining – You need to admit to yourself how destructive excuses are and the negative implications they cause. Drive yourself to change!

Write and Sign a Contract with Yourself – Write down all your goals and assign deadline dates to those goals. Have your some of your close friends check-in and see how well you are doing with those goals.

And finally…

Remember the second that you allow yourself to start making excuses, you are giving yourself permission to fail. So when you say that you don’t have time for a workout, you’re already giving yourself permission to skip that session. Instead of making the excuse, put on your gym clothes and go. I’ve never heard someone complain about feeling worse after a workout.